Asmodeus
Asmodeus, formerly known as Azriel, is the Lord of the Nine Hells of Baator. His realm is Nessus, the 9th layer of the Hells. History The Creation of Hell Powerful though these new gods were, they knew they could not secure the mortal realm until Corruption was contained further. The gods tasked Azriel, who was the chiefest general of the armies of Serenity, to drive back the forces of Corruption so that the gods together could seal it. For many years he fought, and as he and his armies battled the fiends they slowly became corrupted, resorting to crueler methods to gain the advantage. Azriel himself began to resent the gods for not aiding him in this task. Long had he been ambitious of having his own realm to rule over, to be as the other gods were. This desire became twisted too, and he began to desire mortal servants instead of subjects. Azriel hid this desires and intent well, but he could not hide the actions of his army. The gods, disturbed by the corruption and afraid of his power, brought him before their assembly and put him on trial, demanding that he and his army be cast from the heavens. Azriel argued that he had not broken the law, and had completed his task to the letter. His argument was effective, but even as the gods pondered how best to handle this, Azriel saw in their faces that he would never be crowned as one of their equals. Hiding his bitterness, he proposed a pact; the gods were to split the plane of Corruption in two, and Azriel and his armies were to reside in one half as jailers of Corruption, ensuring that the demons were held in check. In return, the gods would allow him to serve also as the jailer for wicked mortal souls, keeping them for eternity to do with and punish as he pleased. The gods found the terms agreeable, and balanced in their favor. However Azriel had not included in the pact any clause that would prevent his servants from "collecting their dues" nor prevent them from tempting mortals to doom. Unaware, the gods signed the Pact Primeval, and they took Corruption and separated it into Baator and the Abyss, with the wasteland of Hades between them. Azriel then named himself Asmodeus, Lord of Baator, and over the next years divided Baator into nine Hells, promoting his most favored captains to rule over the lesser Hells and demoting those who displeased him. He grew stronger, tempting more and more mortals to evil, and the gods soon realized their mistake, as now they had two enemies to fight instead of one. Yet they were magically bound to the Pact Primeval, and could not undo the change they had wrought. The Rift The gods wished to prevent as much of Asmodeus' influence as they could, so they once more made an agreement. They turned to the children of the Creators, and the few that remained in the many planes, asking them for aid in creating a rift in the Void that would all but prevent travel to and from Substance. They agreed to this, and the Old Ones volunteered to become guardians of this seal, along with several of the gods. Category:Deities Category:Archfiends